Fires in Central Africa (Afternoon Overpass)

Scores of fires continue to burn across the savannas (darker greens) and the Sahel (lighter greens and browns) of central Africa. These true-color images from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Aqua and Terra satellites were captured in late November and early December 2002 and show active fire detections marked with red dots. In the upper right hand quadrant (or top center), Lake Chad and its surrounding wetlands make a green splash against the paler desert sands of the Sahara.
Credit: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC